Engine-starter.



S. C. FORRESTER. ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED APR-8. 1916.

' Patenfed Feb. 19,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEEI 1-.

V WITNESSES:

S. C. FORRESTER. ENGINE STARTER. APFL'ICAHON man APR.8. ms.

1,257,210. I Patented Feb.19,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

"Emma ATTORNEYS UNITE SAMUEL CLIFFORD FORRESTER, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

ENGINE-STARTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 19, 1918.

Application filed April 8, 1816. Serial No. 89.889.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL C. Fon- RESTER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Engine-Starters, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates generally to engine starters, and more particularly to a mechanical engine starter consisting of lever actuated connections including a lever ad jacent the operator, with the usual starting connections of an engine shaft, whereby to start the engine from the operators seat, for instance, in an automobile, to which my improvements are especially applicable, my object being to provide certain improvements in the connections between the operating lever and the engine shaft, neutralizing the effect of backfire in a simple, inexpensive manner and allowing for adjustment of the leverage connections to compensate for the differences in action due to climatic variances.

These objects and certain others are. preferably attained by the construction shown in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through the forward portion of an automobile equipped with my improvements.

Fig. 2 is a detail plan view, partly broken away and in section, illustrating portions of my improvements.

Fig. 3 is a detail vertical cross section taken substantially on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a side view of the clutch member shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a vertical longitudinal section taken substantially on line 55 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a detail cross section taken substantially on line 66 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a horizontal detail section taken substantially on line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a detail cross section taken substantially on line 88 of Fig. 5.

Referring now to these figures, my improvements may be applied in connection with an automobile. the frame of which is generally indicated at 10 in Fig. 1, the usual starting crank at 11, and the notched sleeve engageable by the starting crank at 12, which latter as better seen in Fig. 2, is, in accordance with my improvements, provided with a sprocket wheel 13 rigid therewith, and with an annular disk 14, the latter located within the annular side rim 15 of the fan pulley 16, the latter being secured to the engine shaft 17 by any suitable means such as a cross pin indicated at 18 in Fig. 2, passing through the pulley 16 and through the engine shaft 17, the clutch member 1 1 being held within the rim 15 by means of a cap 19 secured to the rim of the pulley 16.

The clutch member 1% has peripheral tangentially disposed cavities 20 in which clutch rollers 21 are movable against the inner surface of the rim 15 so to engage the pulley 16 and rotate the same and the engine shaft 17 when the clutch member 14 is rotated in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3, the rollers 21 being acted upon by spring controlled plungers 22 in the clutch member 14: normally tending to thrust the rollers outwardly in the cavities 20 to clutched position. Due to this construction it is obvious that when the engine is started, the pulley 16 may turn freely with respect to the clutch member 14 without rotating the latter.

'The sprocket wheel 13 before mentioned is connected by a sprocket chain 23 to a sprocket wheel 2%, the latter being rigid with a ratchet wheel 25 and being with this ratchet wheel loosely mounted upon the forward reduced end 26 of a parallel shaft 27 upon which is secured a pawl carrying member 28. V

The pawl carrying member 28 is in the nature of a disk having a radially projecting housing 29 in which a pawl 30 is movable to and from engagement with the toothed periphery 31 of the ratchet wheel 25, the pawl 30 having a stem 32 movable through a bearing in the outer extremity of the housing 29 and being engaged by aspring 33 disposed within the housing and normally tending to force the pawl toward and into engagement with the ratchet wheel 25, the pawl having, however, a laterally projecting pin 3 1 extending through a slotted opening 35 in the pawl carrying member 28 and normally resting upon a cam shoe 36 secured at one point of a ring 37, the latter of which is in turn secured to the lower bearing portion 38 of a supporting bracket 39, and through which bearing portion the shaft 27 extends. The

cam shoe 36 upon which the pin normally rests, thus holds the pawl 30 up wardly and out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 25, but as soon as rotation of shaft 27 commences, the pawl carrying member being rotatable with respect to the ring 37, moves the pin 3 off of the cam shoe 36 and the pawl actuating spring 33 then acts to force the pawl into engagement with the teeth 31.

The rear portion of the shaft 27 projects through the lower bearing portion 40 of another supporting bracket 41, and is provided with a bevel gear e2 as best seen in Figs. 1 and 2. in mesh with a somewhat larger bevel gear 43 at the outer end of a transverse shaft 14 mounted in bearings at the lower ends of supporting brackets 4-5 and 46 and having a rigid upright arm 47 provided in its length with a series of openings 48 as seen in Fi 1, through aselected one of which the forward end of a connecting rod 49 is pivotalljv secured.

Connecting rod 49 being thus adjustable on the arm 47, includes forward and rear sections longitudinally adjustable with respect to one another by virtue of a threaded sleeve coupling 50 connecting their adjacent ends, the rear end of the connecting rod being pivotally connected to a selected opening 51 of a series of such openings in the lower portion of an operating lever intermediately pivoted at and preferably in the nature of foot pedal having a foot piece 5% located at its upper end. the upper portion of the lever 52 extending upwardly through a slotted opening 55 in the floor of the car adjaeent the drivers seat.

Thus, when the operator presses the upper end of lever 52 forwardly, the connecting rod l9 is drawn rearwardly and the transverse shaft 45% partially rotated, communicating a complete rotation to the parallel shaft 27, during which movement the pawl 30 engages the teeth 31 of the ratchet wheel 25 in the manner before described, and thus communicates rotation to the engine shaft 17 through'the connections also previously described.

It is obvious that at both the beginning and ending of the rotative movement of shaft 27, the pawl 30 will be held out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 25 by virtue of the cam shoe 36, thus preventing the transmission of movement caused by back fire of the engine through the connections to the operator as might otherwise be possible.

It is also obvious that, by virtue of the sectional connecting rod l9, the connections between its sections, and its adjustable connections a relatively opposite ends to the shaft arm 4E7 and the lever 52, adjustment of the stroke as well as the length of this con necting rod may be readily effected in order to better accommodate the apparatus to changes due for instance to climatic variances.

I claim:

In an engine starter, the combination with an engine shaft, of a shaft adjacent thereto, a ratchet wheel loose on said second shaft and having operative connection. with the engine shaft, pawl carrying member secured to said second shaft and having a slotted opening and a pawl housing, a pawl movable in said. housing to and from'en gagement. with the ratchet wheel and having a pin projecting laterally through the slotted opening of said pawl carrying member, a spring within the said housing and engaging the pawl to normally force the same into engagement with the ratchet wheel, a bearing for the said second shaft, a cam shoesecured to said beaing and engaging the said pin at the limits of movement of the pawl carrying member to force the pawl out of engagement with the ratchet wheel, an operating lever, and connections between said lever and said second shaft for rotating the letter when the lever is moved.

SAMUEL CLIFFORD FORRESTER;

VJitnesses Jenn ZIMMERMAN, lVALTnn T. XVALKER.

Copies 02? this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patentls Washington, D. C. 

